Windsor finance major Lekan Idowu sees stock rise at Toronto combine

University of Windsor defensive back Lekan Idowu’s personal hedge fund saw some large gains at the Ontario regional combine.

The corporate finance major put on an impressive athletic display in front of CFL scouts at the University of Toronto. Idowu showed explosion with a vertical of 39.5-inches and broad jumped 10-feet, 10.25 inches, placing first in both events. He bench pressed 225 pounds 15 times, ran the 40-yard dash in 4.66, looked smooth in change-of-direction and cover drills.

Idowu knows his athleticism comes from his Nigerian parents, Niyi and Bola.

“My dad played basketball back in Nigeria when Hakeem Olajuwon played there. He played against him in what we would consider high school. His claim to fame is that in the paper after they didn’t say Hakeem won they said that my dad lost. My mom ran track, the 200-metre distance,” Idowu said.

Olajuwon won two NBA titles with the Houston Rockets, the same city where the Idowu’s found themselves after Niyi’s high-level accounting job with ExxonMobil took the family to the United States. Idowu played football for the first time as a grade nine student and continued when the family was transferred to St. Catharines.

Idowu starred as a receiver at Denis Morris Catholic High School and garnered attention from Canadian universities, eventually landing at Windsor. The Lancers defensive coordinator at the time was former CFL defensive back Donnavan Carter who played seven seasons for Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton and Winnipeg.

“Coach Carter said I was quick, athletic, fast, just come play defensive back for me and see how you like it,” Idowu said. “It felt more natural and smooth.”

That decision has helped put Idowu on the cusp of a pro football career. The five-foot-nine, 179-pound cover man did not receive an invite to the national CFL combine, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be drafted.

“I was surprised Idowu didn’t go through,” said a CFL personnel man.

“He is athletic and can play in the CFL,” added another talent evaluator.

Calgary Stampeders defensive back Tunde Adeleke comes to mind when scouts evaluate Idowu. Adeleke was a third-round pick by the Stamps in 2017 and he’ll enter year two in the CFL as the pencilled-in starter for Calgary at safety. Idowu is a similar size and possesses more raw explosiveness than Adeleke based off the jump testing numbers, flying more than one and a half feet further on the broad and 7.5 inches higher on the vertical.

From the results, Idowu believes personnel men have all they want to see from him.

“Easily, easily, easily – here or the national [combne] it doesn’t matter I’m definitely the most athletic defensive back in the draft,” Idowu said.

As a research analyst for the student fund on a portfolio that’s worth $150,000, Idowu has to put in the research and actively select the stocks. If he could purchase his own football stock at this point, it would likely prove to be a wise investment.

He’s 5’9″ 180 and although he has good speed he doesn’t have elite speed. If teams don’t think he’s fast enough to play DB in the CFL then that combined with his size limits him a fair bit. He’s smaller than you’d want in either a safety or a special teamer. I’m sure someone will sign him and give him a look, however. With all of that other athleticism he may play faster than that 40 times suggests.

Perhaps the CFL needs to increase the #s that get invited to the national… perhaps a wild card style selection process can be introduced that looks at all regional results and adds up to 5or 6 additional deserving invitees once all regionals are done. Seems this kid deserved to be there.